Senior Golf Tip 1: Flare Lead Foot for Better Move Through Ball

When the hips lose flexibility, it becomes more difficult to rotate smoothly and powerfully through impact and into the follow-through.

Not only does our distance suffer, we may “block” shots the the right or overuse the hands and flip the club, causing the ball to veer left. Limited hip rotation also throws off our weight shift, balance and rhythm.

There’s a very easy way to improve your ability to get through the golf ball: At address, just point your left foot (right foot for lefties) a bit more toward the target. Flaring the foot 10-15° -- about 5° more than a younger golfer needs -- opens the left hip and promotes a more fluid turn. This will allow your weight to smoothly shift from right to left on the downswing, eliminating the “reverse pivot” and improving your power and balance.

The right foot, meanwhile, should be perpendicular to the target line at address, or slightly flared to the right to help the hips rotate on the backswing.